By her own admission, Anna Friel has always been generous with her hugs.
And the latest lucky recipient is her young West End co-star Joseph Cross.
The pair cuddled up close at a London restaurant last week following a performance of Breakfast At Tiffany's.

The 33-year-old actress whispered in 23-year-old Cross's ear before he gave her a goodnight kiss.

The pair have clearly developed a happy working relationship on the show, which features Miss Friel as Holly Golightly, the socialite who captures a young writer's heart - and includes a nude scene.

Cross and Miss Friel, who is the long-term partner of actor David Thewlis, 46, left the Theatre Royal together on Wednesday night and visited a number of bars before ending up at the Wolesley restaurant in Piccadilly.
A friend of the actress, who has a four-year-old daughter, Gracie, by Thewlis, said: 'Joe is a good friend of Anna and David. There is nothing more to it than that.'

The night after the restaurant cuddle, Miss Friel, Thewlis and Cross were seen sharing a taxi as they left the Berkeley Square Christmas Ball.
And on Saturday night after the show, the former Brookside actress and Cross went for a drink with friends at a bar in central London.

They were sharing a rolled-up cigarette in the street when Miss Friel broke off to give Cross a lingering kiss.

Miss Friel admitted she was 'tactile' in a recent interview to publicise her hit U.S. show Pushing Daisies, in which she stars with actor Lee Pace. She said: 'It's not nice to work with someone as gorgeous as Lee and not to be able to give him a hug. I'm a tactile person and hugs are something I hold dear to my heart.'

source article & pics: dailymail.co.uk

I really hope this is just innocent touching and a peck-on-the-cheek... But those pictures would suggest otherwise. I'm a huge fan of both David Thewlis and Anna Friel (though a bigger fan of Thewlis), and they are by far my favourite celeb couple. I would be most upset if they ever split up, especially if it was due to any infidelity on Anna's part

After repeatedly denying that their nine-year romance was on the rocks, Anna Friel and David Thewlis have finally called time on their relationship.

The Daily Mail has learned that the couple, together for nine years, have parted months after 34-year-old Miss Friel moved a handsome young actor into their home.

She and Thewlis, 47, who have a five-year-old daughter, Gracie, have been forced apart by acting commitments for the past six months.

Tonight a friend told the Mail: ‘Things have not been great for a long time and they have tried to keep this quiet to protect everyone.

‘It certainly did not help that Anna and David have been forced to live apart for so long, but there are other issues at hand that have made them realise the relationship was over.’

Friends are still hopeful that the *couple can resolve their differences. The source added: ‘They do care about each other very much, and the most important thing now is that they both continue to be the best parents they can be for Gracie.

‘They will have to see each other over Christmas at some point, but hopefully it will not be too painful.’

The pair got together in 2001 after meeting on a flight to Cannes. They divided their time between a converted ballroom in Clerkenwell, central London, owned by Thewlis, and a house in Windsor owned by Miss Friel. They then bought a house together in the leafy enclave of Beachwood *Canyon in Hollywood together.

Miss Friel admitted their relationship was far from conventional, saying: ‘He’s 13 years older than me. We have our own separate properties and we’re not married.’

Suggestions were made that all was not well when Miss Friel was pictured kissing actor Joseph Cross, 23, her co-star in her West End play Breakfast At Tiffanys last December.

At the time, the former Brookside actress stressed that he was merely a friend.

And even when Cross moved into the couple’s Hollywood home in April, Thewlis said: ‘Joseph is a good friend of mine. I have no problem with him staying at my house.’